Editor's Foreword [Spring 2009] Page: 139

                                
Editor's Foreword

In this issue, authors address near-death experiences (NDEs) across a
wide time spectrum, from historical to contemporary to future. It is the
third of a few transition issues between Dr. Greyson's editorship and my
own, in which he oversaw the peer review process and accepted the articles
and I endorsed his decision and worked with the authors on final edits.
In the lead article, religion and philosophy professor Stephen E.
Potthoff examines the visions of two 3rd century North African
Christian martyrs as they approached their deaths. He evaluates
how their visions compare to contemporary NDEs with an emphasis
on the ability of such experiences to constructively transform both
those who experience them and those who learn of them.
In the second article, psychology doctoral candidate Simon R. Jones
and professor Charles Fernyhough examine the visions of the 18th
century mystic Emanuel Swedenborg. They evaluate how his visions
compare to contemporary NDEs with an emphasis on possible
physiological factors in the facilitation of such experiences.
In his book review, higher education dean and parapsychologist
Jeffrey Mishlove examines a voluminous work that addresses
primarily contemporary NDEs, P. M. H. Atwater's The Big Book of
Near-Death Experiences. He evaluates the strengths and limitations of
this work that he considers "the most comprehensive presentation of
knowledge concerning ... NDEs ... yet assembled ...."
This issue concludes with a letter to the editor from NDE
investigators Robert G. Mays and Suzanne B. Mays. In it, they
examine methodology in critical care physician Sam Parnia's recently
announced AWARE study to expand understanding of the nature of
consciousness at death. They recommend modification of the proposed
methodology to more fully achieve the study's aim by maximizing
future knowledge of apparently nonphysical veridical - that is,
verified as accurate - perception during the first moments of death.
It is my hope that readers of this volume will enjoy an exploration of
NDEs ranging from the distant past to the much-anticipated future.
Janice Miner Holden, Ed.D.
jan.holden@unt.edu

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